Shall We Cook? ~ Tuesday 4

Welcome to Toni Taddeo's Tuesday 4 kept in memory of her.

Let's talk about food this week shall we?

Most people enjoy eating good food after all.

1.  What is/are your favorite foods to eat ?

I don't think I have one favourite. There are just so many good foods out there.  But if I really have to choose, I would say roasted Greek potatoes and toasted pita bread with tzatziki sauce. 

2.   How often do you cook at home and what kind of  meals do you make? 

I cook at home most days.  I cook a variety of things.  I'm not a fancy cook and I would call my cooking style old fashioned home style cooking. In fact, I came to cooking rather late. I only really started cooking on a regular basis after I stopped working. 

My mother was a fabulous cook and she loved to do it. She would often come and visit me for extended periods and do all my cooking, shopping and other jobs I just didn't have time for working very long hours. Once I stopped working I had time to learn how to cook some things. The two main things I wanted to learn were how to bake bread and how to cook beans from scratch. I already knew how to cook basis meals because my mom raised all of her children to have basic skills in cooking, cleaning and even sewing.

Even though I cook regularly, I can't say it's my most favourite thing. I think it's because it just takes so much time with all the thinking about meals, buying and prepping food, cooking and then cleaning. I'd rather be reading, lol.  But I'm grateful I can cook and I'm grateful to have food to cook.

Here are the few meals I made over the past week.

Sausages with onions & apple, pasta with beans & onions, Caesar salad

Ground beef & veggies in gravy over boiled red potatoes

Spaghettini with meat & lentil sauce, garlic toast

Chicken wings, chips & coleslaw

Roasted chicken served with roasted root vegetables

Spaghettini with meat sauce, green salad & garlic bread

Air fried pork chop, pasta with spaghetti sauce & cucumber salad

I also made a large Blueberry Upside Down cake with some blueberries that were starting to go soft. We ate some and I froze the rest for when we (I) have a sweet tooth.

I didn't make any whipped cream topping

I go through periods of time where I eat out more than others,  anywhere from once a week to once a month.  Even a simple restaurant meal is very expensive so I've cut way back on eating out over the past several years.

A meal for one costs a minimum of $20 (Canadian) without a beverage.  Of course you need to double that if you are eating out with your spouse or a friend. If you add drinks, I would say a simple meal costs no less than $60 for 2 people not including the tip. That's a lot and I'd rather spend that kind of money on other things I need.

3. When you go out to eat what foods do you find yourself ordering most?

I mostly go for Vietnamese food (Shrimp Salad rolls and a combination meal in a bowl are favourites) or Japanese food (usually a bento box).  There are both Vietnamese and Japanese options aplenty in my neighborhood. I also like western foods (Clubhouse sandwich with fries, pork chops and mashed potatoes, Baron of Beef Dip) and Greek foods, especially Chicken Souvlakia platter (Greek salad, rice pilaf, chicken kebab, lemon herb potatoes, pita bread and tzatziki sauce. Greek food is a big treat and I have it once or twice a year.

The combo bowl I like to eat

Beef Pho Soup & Shrimp Salad Rolls

4. Can you recommend a restaurant in your area?  Why do you like it?

I would recommend 3 restaurants where I eat my favourite foods (Thai Son Restaurant, Sushi Kaido and Helen's Grill).  It just depends on what you like. There are many restaurants in my neighbourhood and most are within walking distance. In fact, 2 of them have Michelin stars (Published on Main & Burdock & Co.). I've never eaten at them because they are both incredibly expensive. But the menus do look very interesting and they seem well patronised.  Perhaps I will have a chance to experience one or both of them in future.

Restaurants and Eating Out

Welcome back to Toni Taddeo's Tuesday 4 in memory of Toni Taddeo and hosted by Annie at the blog, Cottage by the Sea.

Today's theme is restaurants and eating out.

1 Do you like eating out with friends or would you rather have them over for a meal?  

 

I would love to host friends for a meal but I no longer have the energy to do all the cleaning, shopping, food preparation and cooking, hosting guests then cleaning up. So whenever possible I meet up with a friend for one on one casual dining or coffee dates. I save the hosting for the odd holiday meal but the past few years of course I haven't had anyone over for any meal.  When I finally complete downsizing, organizing and refreshing my small home I may enjoy hosting again.  But then again, maybe not.

Vietnamese Pho Soup

2. Let's go out to eat. You pick.  Where are we going ?

 

If it's possible I like going to a lunch buffet where each of us can choose the things we like, take our time and savour all the goodies. But the hotel I liked to go to for buffet lunches hasn't reopened the service since Covid and I doubt they will again. It means I'll likely choose an ethnic restaurant (Greek, Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese, Indian, African, primarily Ethiopian or Kenyan). I also like western food but these days it's hard to find such a restaurant. Sometimes I get to Denny's for their salads and sandwiches and there is the odd restaurant that serves the mom and pop style food I like.  Yesterday I had a Clubhouse sandwich for the first time in years. I don't eat out so frequently anymore unless I'm travelling. Then I eat almost all my meals out unless I stay in an Air BnB and it is properly equipped for cooking. I occasionally eat lunch or dinner out when I stay in an Air BnB and cook the odd meal. It's nice to have a place to make simple soups and meals and to have a place to put fruits and drinks.  It's a lot easier on the budget and eating out several times a day also gets boring.

3. What are you going to order tonight?

 

Normally we order chicken wings, pizza or Chinese food. All of these tend to be more economical than other foods. If we dine out we often go for steak, ribs, Greek food or Vietnamese food or other ethnic foods. My DH likes beef, chicken and fish in that order, pork less so. He isn't adventurous enough yet to try the type of fish we serve on the west coast of Canada.  I  prefer chicken when eating out and I also cook a lot of chicken.

4.  Are you going to have dessert?  

 

It depends what we eat. I likely won't add dessert unless I'm going for lunch and taking hours to eat because eating the meal is filling enough.  The one place I used to go quite frequently to meet friends is no longer open for buffet but they used to have many different desserts on offer and they were all good. You could take a sliver of each item you liked if you didn't want to over do things or you could simply have one item of your choice. I'm always amazed at how much some people can eat and they always seem to be the skinny ones!